Don’t let sliding your fingers between the skin and breast make you sqeamish; this is an incredibly tasty roast chook, which will double as an indulgent chicken sandwich or simple salad tomorrow at work.
1 lemon
Sea salt and cracked black pepper
1.6 kg organic chicken (optional – with giblets)
1 bunch fresh thyme
75g unsalted butter, softened
5 tablespoons finely chopped mixed herbs (chervil, tarragon, chives, parsley – any combination will do)
Turn oven on at 220°, fan-forced 200°. Roll the lemon back and forth on the work surface to soften it and then pierce it about 20 times with a sharp skewer. Season the chicken cavity with salt and pepper and place giblets (optional – I don’t worry about finding a chook with giblets), lemon and thyme inside.
In a bowl, mix 50g of the butter with the herbs and ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper (if you have the time a few minutes in the fridge makes this butter mixture a lot easier to slip under the skin). Starting at the neck end, (I tend to start at the bottom as there is more room to get your fingers in – and my chook turns out fine) slip your fingers beneath the skin to loosen it over each breast. Then insert the herb butter and pat the skin back into place, spreading the butter out over the skin and season well.
Lay the chicken on one side on a rack in a roasting dish and roast for 20 minutes. Turn the chicken to the other side and roast for another 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 190°, fan forced 180°. Turn the chicken breast-side down with the head tipped downwards and roast for a further 15 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a warmed platter, cover loosely with foil. Turn the oven off leaving the door ajar and rest the chicken inside for 10 – 30 minutes.
Living and Eating appeals to my logical, ordered side. The book is clearly structured, with a recipe for all the English-household basics. Roast chook is represented seven different ways; not to mention the coq au vin, chicken breasts Escoffier and the chicken, spinach and lemon pie. They offer potato dishes from all over Europe, from simply roasted in goose fat to pan haggerty, six different types of mash and gratin daphinois.